have a ton of acorns, wait until right before
season slip in, and find which tree has the
most droppings under it. Set up quickly and
quietly.
So now I am walking through the woods
looking up and down. Preparing as many
trees as possible, and have options for
different wind conditions. Last year, I did not
have near enough south wind stands. That
will not happen again.
Pace yourself in August. Don’t go hog wild
and get all your preparations done too soon.
This is a fun month to move slowly through
and get things ready and done right. At the
same time, don’t wait
until the last minute. I like to get my clothes
hung out plenty early. I hang them in a grove
by our house and have a little roof over them
to keep them dry.
As I continue to write throughout the season I
will be going into great detail about all the
above topics and how I change as the
whitetails change. Every aspect of a big buck
changes many times
from September through December. I hunt
many different types of terrains here in
Minnesota. In this column I discussed some
of my pasture tactics.
This was fresh in my mind, as I just hung
stands there. Next week, I will be going down
the road about an hour and a half to prepare
stands at a predominately poplar covered
woods with a little farmland.
My goal this season is to harvest several
does and one good buck. This brings me to
another topic I can touch on. I will not shoot
a doe out of a stand that I call a buck stand.
We have plenty of deer and I don’t need to
track and drag a doe through the
areas where Mr. Big is living. Let me back
up. I may hunt a field edge right away for a big
buck but for the most part I put up field edge
stands strictly for does. The goal is put some
meat in the freezer early and take a few does
so there is less to chase during the rut. Most
of my properties have too many does. Come
rut season there are simple too many little
bucks out chasing while the big bucks keep
their particular girlfriend under
wraps, in tight cover. I am lucky enough to
have a few very faithful “doe stands”.
Enjoy August, and as far as I am concerned
hunting season is here! I hope you follow me
along on this hunting season as I bring you a
journal of each and every outing and a weekly
follow up
column with all the wrongs and rights of
deer hunting.
season slip in, and find which tree has the
most droppings under it. Set up quickly and
quietly.
So now I am walking through the woods
looking up and down. Preparing as many
trees as possible, and have options for
different wind conditions. Last year, I did not
have near enough south wind stands. That
will not happen again.
Pace yourself in August. Don’t go hog wild
and get all your preparations done too soon.
This is a fun month to move slowly through
and get things ready and done right. At the
same time, don’t wait
until the last minute. I like to get my clothes
hung out plenty early. I hang them in a grove
by our house and have a little roof over them
to keep them dry.
As I continue to write throughout the season I
will be going into great detail about all the
above topics and how I change as the
whitetails change. Every aspect of a big buck
changes many times
from September through December. I hunt
many different types of terrains here in
Minnesota. In this column I discussed some
of my pasture tactics.
This was fresh in my mind, as I just hung
stands there. Next week, I will be going down
the road about an hour and a half to prepare
stands at a predominately poplar covered
woods with a little farmland.
My goal this season is to harvest several
does and one good buck. This brings me to
another topic I can touch on. I will not shoot
a doe out of a stand that I call a buck stand.
We have plenty of deer and I don’t need to
track and drag a doe through the
areas where Mr. Big is living. Let me back
up. I may hunt a field edge right away for a big
buck but for the most part I put up field edge
stands strictly for does. The goal is put some
meat in the freezer early and take a few does
so there is less to chase during the rut. Most
of my properties have too many does. Come
rut season there are simple too many little
bucks out chasing while the big bucks keep
their particular girlfriend under
wraps, in tight cover. I am lucky enough to
have a few very faithful “doe stands”.
Enjoy August, and as far as I am concerned
hunting season is here! I hope you follow me
along on this hunting season as I bring you a
journal of each and every outing and a weekly
follow up
column with all the wrongs and rights of
deer hunting.
Just like December means Christmas to a little kid,
August means preparation for bowhunting to me.
The excitement is at about the same level. The
hunting shows on T.V., the bachelor groups of bucks
in the clover fields are just a small part of this August
ritual. This is the time of the year where the restless
nights start to kick into full swing. Stands are getting
hung, clothes are pulled out to wash, trail cameras
are checked like a trap line. How long can one-
person stare at a topo map or aerial photo???
Staying away from food plots is a struggle trying to
get a glimpse of a huge whitetail with my name on it.
Emails to buddies and the bets start flying. Inventory
on all supplies is carefully checked. Batteries,
arrows, steps, the list goes on and on.
Equipment is checked and double- checked.
Suddenly the heat and bugs don’ t prevent hunters
from going to the woods. Yes, whitetail hunting is a
nasty disease that comes every year about this time.
It’s the beginning of August and ¾ of my stands are
hung. Some are hung in the same trees, and others
in entirely new spots. And that is exciting!
How I scout in August Motivation is not a problem; in
fact staying home becomes the problem. I love
walking the same properties year after year finding
new things and learning
more and more. What am I looking for?
Acorns!! If I have found one weakness in a
big buck, it’s acorn. Look up, find the trees that are
loaded. You’ve heard it before but how many
actually do it? I recently found an oak in the same
vicinity of where I shot a 130 class 10 pt. last year. He
too was feeding on acorns when I harvested him last
year. I know it will be a hotspot again when those
acorns start to fall. Deer could come from any
direction, which makes set up tricky. I did not hang a
stand just yet but prepared 3 trees all around it so
the night of my ambush I will simply sneak in, survey
the wind and sign, then decide which of the three
trees to hunt out of, set up, and hunt. This tactic
should be a good one.
Droppings are the freshest of sign. If you run into a
lot of droppings this is an obvious active spot. I have
really started to hunt oak filled cow pastures. I
usually walk fence lines, which run between thick
woods and cow pastures.
As I walk the fence lines it’s become easy to see the
trails crossing the fence. Look for hair on the barbed
wire, as this is also good fresh sign.
Deer dropping do not last long in a cow pasture. I
tend to look on the woods side of the fences for this,
along with trails, to help determine where the deer
are entering the pasture. Deer, especially bucks,
love to stage in a back corner of a pasture and chew
on acorns before heading to fields after dark. Get
there early and get ready. Acorns just lay right on top
and are easy pickings for deer. If you do not think you
have acorns look closely you just may have that one
hidden Oak on your property. If you
August means preparation for bowhunting to me.
The excitement is at about the same level. The
hunting shows on T.V., the bachelor groups of bucks
in the clover fields are just a small part of this August
ritual. This is the time of the year where the restless
nights start to kick into full swing. Stands are getting
hung, clothes are pulled out to wash, trail cameras
are checked like a trap line. How long can one-
person stare at a topo map or aerial photo???
Staying away from food plots is a struggle trying to
get a glimpse of a huge whitetail with my name on it.
Emails to buddies and the bets start flying. Inventory
on all supplies is carefully checked. Batteries,
arrows, steps, the list goes on and on.
Equipment is checked and double- checked.
Suddenly the heat and bugs don’ t prevent hunters
from going to the woods. Yes, whitetail hunting is a
nasty disease that comes every year about this time.
It’s the beginning of August and ¾ of my stands are
hung. Some are hung in the same trees, and others
in entirely new spots. And that is exciting!
How I scout in August Motivation is not a problem; in
fact staying home becomes the problem. I love
walking the same properties year after year finding
new things and learning
more and more. What am I looking for?
Acorns!! If I have found one weakness in a
big buck, it’s acorn. Look up, find the trees that are
loaded. You’ve heard it before but how many
actually do it? I recently found an oak in the same
vicinity of where I shot a 130 class 10 pt. last year. He
too was feeding on acorns when I harvested him last
year. I know it will be a hotspot again when those
acorns start to fall. Deer could come from any
direction, which makes set up tricky. I did not hang a
stand just yet but prepared 3 trees all around it so
the night of my ambush I will simply sneak in, survey
the wind and sign, then decide which of the three
trees to hunt out of, set up, and hunt. This tactic
should be a good one.
Droppings are the freshest of sign. If you run into a
lot of droppings this is an obvious active spot. I have
really started to hunt oak filled cow pastures. I
usually walk fence lines, which run between thick
woods and cow pastures.
As I walk the fence lines it’s become easy to see the
trails crossing the fence. Look for hair on the barbed
wire, as this is also good fresh sign.
Deer dropping do not last long in a cow pasture. I
tend to look on the woods side of the fences for this,
along with trails, to help determine where the deer
are entering the pasture. Deer, especially bucks,
love to stage in a back corner of a pasture and chew
on acorns before heading to fields after dark. Get
there early and get ready. Acorns just lay right on top
and are easy pickings for deer. If you do not think you
have acorns look closely you just may have that one
hidden Oak on your property. If you
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